Happiness

Dr Mark Holder is a neuroscientist who works out of UBCO studying happiness.  Neat, eh?  Apparently, some of his research has involved cookies and dolphins (separately, not together, though maybe there is an idea in there somewhere).  Dr Holder spoke on the Science of Happiness in Children at the Rotary Centre for the Arts in Kelowna as part of a CATCH Coalition (Community Action Toward Children’s Health) event on February 11th, 2014.  Here are 20 pearls that I took away from his presentation.

Our modern medical and research focus over the last 100 years has been identifying what is wrong and how to fix it.  Though this is VERY important, there is much need for a complementary model that focuses on what is RIGHT and how to facilitate it.  This field is called “Positive Psychology” and it focuses on our habits and motivations and what makes us thrive. Are you ready for that paradigm shift?

Having an imaginary friend (as a 30-60% of children do) can reduce loneliness and increase happiness.

Exercise (especially team based), relationships (quality > quantity), and enjoying nature are all activities promote happiness in both adults and children.

Globally, there is a strong correlation between math scores and happiness scores.  The countries with the highest math scores have the lowest happiness scores and vice verse.  Surely there is a happy medium in there somewhere…

Alice in Wonderland Syndrome (AKA Little Patient Syndrome) is a brain processing disorder where the patient has trouble grasping the reality of portion and size around them.

Reward systems, though effective in the short term, will actually reduce value and enjoyment of that particular activity in the long term.

70% of children will score themselves in the top 2 faces of the happiness scale regardless of where they live in the world.  They have done this study in Kelowna, India, and Africa. So it doesn’t matter if a kid is growing up in the beautiful Okanagan or a poverty stricken Zambia, they have an amazing intrinsic ability to be happy.

Lack of depression does not equal happiness.  It is important to get rid of the bad, but that is not the only step.

The country Bhutan looks at the impact of all legislations on the well-being (peace and serenity) of their people. Politics and please mingling? Is that even allowed?

There is a relationship between hope and academics.  There was a strong correlation between predicted grades at the start of the school year and actual grades at the end of the year, totally regardless of IQ.  I love this one!

When we have too many choices, our happiness and satisfaction actually go down.  When we know what other options are out there, we are more likely to have regret and wonder what could have been.

Married people are happier than people in a common-law relationship.

Optimism is linked to increased self-esteem, health, and happiness.  Pessimists have an increased risk of accidental and violent death.  Yikes.

Smiling and laughing are not learned behaviours; they are intrinsic to all children.  A blind and deaf baby will learn to laugh and smile just that same as one who can hear and see.

Kids smile over 400 times a day, whereas adults smile between 5 and 20 times a day.  They truly are the superheroes of smiling. Where did we go wrong???

The size of a smile in high school and baseball card photos has been correlated with future happiness, satisfaction in marriage, longevity, and being considered an inspiration to others.

If you prevent yourself physically from being able to smile, you will not be a good judge of authentic smiles in others.  This includes preventing natural muscle control by using Botox!

There is a down side to too much optimism.  People (especially teens) with the highest extreme on the happiness scale actually have a reduction in smart and cautionary steps.  For example, they may be more likely to get into a car with someone drinking and driving because they optimistically assume that nothing bad could happen to them.

The health effects of laughing include reduced muscle tension, arrhythmias, asthma attacks, and low back pain and increased blood flow and antioxidant production in mother’s milk. Doctor’s orders: laughter, minimum three times a day for 50 years.

You can cultivate optimism.  There are apparently many ways of doing this, but one activity is to take 20 minutes twice a week to write about your ideal situation and best self. Write about multiple domains, such as finances, relationships, career, and family.

I hope this post has you smiling!